This invention relates to a slide valve apparatus for an internal combustion engine, and more particularly to a slide valve apparatus incorporating side-by-side intake and exhaust slide valves.
Conventionally, most internal combustion engines utilize reciprocable tappet valves for controlling the fuel intake and the gas exhaust cycles of an internal combustion engine. Since the tappet valves reciprocably move into the cylinder, they are subjected to contact and damage by the reciprocating piston. Accordingly, the piston travel must be limited to avoid such contact with the tappet valves.
Slide valves for controlling the intake and exhaust of internal combustion engine cylinders are known, as shown in the following U.S. Pat. Nos.:
Re. 13,905; Murphy; Apr. 27, 1915 PA0 1,256,720; Murray; Feb. 19, 1918 PA0 1,273,002; Samuels; July 16, 1918 PA0 1,374,140; Dock; Apr. 5, 1921 PA0 1,476,359; Ford; Dec. 4, 1923 PA0 1,492,587; Toth; May 6, 1924 PA0 1,537,248; Maloney; May 12, 1925 PA0 1,562,461; Maloney; Nov. 24, 1925 PA0 4,119,077; Vallejos; Oct. 10, 1978 PA0 4,201,174; Vallejos; May 6, 1980
The Murray U.S. Pat. No. 1,256,720, the Samuels U.S. Pat. No. 1,273,002, and the Dock U.S. Pat. No. 1,374,140 disclose single horizontal, flat sliding valve plates.
The Murphy U.S. Pat. No. Re. 13,905, both Maloney U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,537,248 and 1,562,461 and the Vallejos U.S. Pat. No. 4,201,174 (FIGS. 14, 15, and 16) disclose dual horizontal sliding plates, one above the other.
The Ford U.S. Pat. No. 1,476,359 discloses a vertically slidable valve plate.
The Toth U.S. Pat. No. 1,492,587 (FIGS. 4 and 5) and both Vallejos U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,119,077 and 4,201,174 disclose dual slide valve plates which operate side-by-side in response to cam or eccentric linkage for periodically opening and closing the mouth or opening of the internal combustion engine cylinder, in order to control the intake and exhaust gas flow.
In the slide valve apparatus disclosed in FIGS. 1-3 of the Toth patent, a single slide valve 11 incorporating a pair of openings 19 and 21 is moved between a pair of walls, the lower one of which forms the top wall of the combustion chamber in which only a single opening 21 is formed. Two openings are required in the single slide valve 11 for controlling both the intake and the exhaust gases from the cylinder.
In the twin plate valve apparatus disclosed in FIGS. 4 and 5 of the Toth patent, only a single opening 121 for valve 111 and an undisclosed opening in valve 111a are included for alignment with corresponding fixed openings above and below the slide plates or valves.
In FIG. 12 of the Vallejos U.S. Pat. No. 4,119,077 and FIG. 3 of the Vallejos U.S. Pat. No. 4,201,174, only a single opening is formed by the cooperation of the two slidable valve plates 4 for conveying both intake fuel and exhaust gas, as described more fully in col. 11, lines 50-56 of the Vallejos U.S. Pat. No. 4,119,077.